Comparison of Prolonged Exposure vs Cognitive Processing Therapy for Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among US Veterans: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a prevalent and serious mental health problem. Although there are effective psychotherapies for PTSD, there is little information about their comparative effectiveness.

Objective: To compare the effectiveness of prolonged exposure (PE) vs cognitive processing therapy (CPT) for treating PTSD in veterans.

Virtual Standardized Patients vs Academic Training for Learning Motivational Interviewing Skills in the US Department of Veterans Affairs and the US Military: A Randomized Trial.

Importance: Despite the need for effective and scalable training in motivational interviewing (MI) that includes posttraining coaching and feedback, limited evidence exists regarding the effectiveness of using virtual (computerized) standardized patients (VSPs) in such training.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of training with a VSP on the acquisition and maintenance of MI skills compared with traditional academic study.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This study was a 2-group, parallel-training randomized trial of 120 volunteer health care professionals recruited from a Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense medical facility.

Randomized controlled trial of acceptance and commitment therapy for distress and impairment in OEF/OIF/OND veterans.

Objective: Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a widely utilized psychotherapeutic approach, but randomized, controlled studies are lacking in veterans. This study evaluated the efficacy of ACT for emotional distress among veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Method: One hundred sixty veterans (80% male, Mage = 34 years) with anxiety or depressive disorder according to the (4th ed.

The efficacy of Focused Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in VA primary care.

Focused Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (FACT) is a brief intervention based on traditional Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Although there is a growing body of research on the efficacy of ACT for a variety of populations and disorders, there is little research to date on the use of FACT in group settings. This project is 1 of the first of its kind, as it examines data on psychological flexibility, health and mental health status, and symptom reduction from a 4-week FACT group.

Quetiapine for the treatment of cocaine use disorder.

Background: Cocaine addiction continues to be a significant healthcare issue, yet there are no FDA approved medications for the treatment of cocaine use disorder within the United States.

Methods: This 12-week, prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study examined the effectiveness of quetiapine (Seroquel XR™) versus matched placebo for the treatment of DSM-IV cocaine dependence in non-psychotic individuals. Subjects randomized to quetiapine (N = 29) were titrated up to a target dose of 400mg/day of quetiapine, while those in the placebo arm (N = 31) were given a matched placebo.

Psychopathic traits and preattentive threat processing in children: a novel test of the fearlessness hypothesis.

We tested the fearlessness hypothesis of psychopathy in an at-risk sample of 88 preadolescent children. Psychopathy was measured using combined child- and parent-reported scores on the Antisocial Process Screening Device (APSD). Using a continuous-flash-suppression paradigm, we evaluated threat processing at the preattentive level for the first time in a study of psychopathy.

Heavy episodic drinking in college students: associations with features of psychopathy and antisocial personality disorder.

Objective: This study extends the college heavy episodic drinking literature by examining the associations between features of psychopathy and antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), on the one hand, and heavy episodic drinking and associated problem behaviors, on the other.

Participants: Participants were 159 (85 male, 74 female) undergraduates from a private university.

Methods: Participants completed self-report measures assessing alcohol use, frequency, and consequences of heavy episodic drinking, and personality pathology.

Interactions between the COMT Val108/158Met polymorphism and maternal prenatal smoking predict aggressive behavior outcomes.

The purpose of the current study is to examine the moderating influence of the catechol O methyltransferase gene (COMT) on the maternal prenatal smoking/offspring externalizing disorder relationship. The sample consisted of 430 young adults born between 1981 and 1984 at the Mater Misericordiae Mother's Hospital in Brisbane, Australia, as well as their mothers and peers. Mothers reported their prenatal smoking status during pregnancy, and genetic data was obtained from the youth at a later follow-up in adulthood.

Differences between trait fear and trait anxiety: implications for psychopathology.

Fear and anxiety are poorly delineated in much of the clinical and research literatures. Although some theorists and researchers have posited explanations for how trait fear and trait anxiety differ, many others conceptualize the constructs as largely or entirely interchangeable. The primary goals of this review are to examine clinical conceptualizations and neurobiological studies of fear and anxiety, examine the animal and human literatures on the correlates of fear and anxiety, provide clearer definitions of these two constructs, and discuss their implications for psychopathology.

Gender differences in autonomic indicators of antisocial personality disorder features.

We investigated the autonomic indicators of antisocial personality disorder (APD) features in a mixed gender student sample. One hundred college students (50 men, 50 women) were administered an interview of APD and self-report measures of aggression and psychopathy. Participants completed a passive coping task and viewed emotionally valenced slideshows while their electrodermal activity (EDA), pre-ejection period (PEP), and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) were measured.

Trait correlates of relational aggression in a nonclinical sample: DSM-IV personality disorders and psychopathy.

The implications of adult relational aggression in adults for personality pathology are poorly understood. We investigated the association between relational aggression and features of DSM-IV personality disorders and psychopathy in a sample of undergraduates (N = 220). In contrast to the childhood literature, we found no significant difference in relational aggression between men and women.

Autonomic correlates of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and oppositional defiant disorder in preschool children.

Numerous studies have revealed autonomic underarousal in conduct-disordered adolescents and antisocial adults. It is unknown, however, whether similar autonomic markers are present in at-risk preschoolers. In this study, the authors compared autonomic profiles of 4- to 6-year-old children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD; n = 18) with those of age-matched controls (n = 20).

A comparison of psychophysiological and self-report measures of BAS and BIS activation.

The behavioral approach (BAS) and behavioral inhibition (BIS) systems are central to theories of both personality and psychopathology, yet agreement on methods of assessing BAS and BIS sensitivity has yet to emerge. We compare the Carver and White (1994) BIS/BAS scales with putative physiological markers of BAS (pre-ejection period [PEP], respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA]) and BIS (electrodermal responding) reactivity during reward and extinction among 50 undergraduates. PEP, RSA, and electrodermal activity each responded strongly to one or more task conditions, but correlations with BIS/BAS scores were stronger for measures of affectivity than for any physiological marker.